Auggie runs a small tobacco shop in Brooklyn, New York. The whole neighborhood comes to visit him to buy cigarettes and have some small talk. During the movie Lou Reed tries to explain why he has to have a cut on his health insurance bill if he keeps smoking and Madonna acts as a Singing Telegram.
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Reviews
Very Cool!!!
Really Surprised!
Memorable, crazy movie
Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful
i don't remember the movie at at all but i have taped this Madonna scene: In 1995, it's already a couple of years that Madie just do silly things and this guest starring is like this: sexpot, too much make- up, bad manners, sure she couldn't be no more an inspiration for me and in addition, she delivers the message to unpleasant, grumpy Keiteil: it's not funny, not dramatic, it's just nothing... so really, this scene would have been cut from the movie, it would stay the same... Enough of those in between movies!
Brooklyn, New York has changed over the last 18 years since this film first premiered. The location near Prospect Park is now one of the most desirable locales to live and reside in the borough and even in New York City. Brooklyn's transformation from a working class borough has changed in some parts. Brooklyn has become hip for the trend setters. It also gentrified in areas especially near the Prospect Park, Brooklyn's Central Park. Still, the film reminds me of another time when Brooklyn wasn't so hip or trendy but real. The people of Brooklyn and New York City like Harvey Keitel, Lou Reed, and others recall their likes and dislikes as well. They spend their time smoking at the Brooklyn Cigar Shop where Augie played by Keitel is the manager but not the owner. The cast includes top notch performers like Lily Tomlin, Lou Reed, Roseanne, Mira Sorvino, etc. A lot of the film's script seems improvised but it makes the film more authentic to documenting the life in a day.
Whenever "Blue in the Face" comes up in conversation, nothing angers me more then hearing it compared to as a sequel to "Smoke." It is clearly not a sequel. When talking about "Goldeneye" you don't refer to it as just another sequel to "Dr. No" in the James Bond series. While "Smoke" was a drama, "Blue in the Face" takes a comical look at those who go in and out of a corner tobacco shop in the heart of Brooklyn. Besides, you can't compare a fully scripted film like "Smoke" to an almost completely improvised approach in "Blue in the Face."Harvey Keitel plays Auggie Wren, the man behind the counter of the Brooklyn Cigar Store, who acts as a homing beacon for some of the most colorful characters in Brooklyn, including a mentally unstable girlfriend, a rapping watch dealer, an owner and his wife having marriage trouble, and so on. The cast also includes Jim Jarmusch, Malik Yoba, Victor Argo, Madonna, Lily Tomlin, Roseanne, Mel Gorham and Mira Sorvino to name a few.The topics covered in this film include Brooklyn, the Dodgers, smoking, eye glasses, lack of communication, relationships, surveys and much more.One of the unique elements of "Blue in the Face" is the use of both the film footage, and interview footage of the actual residents of Brooklyn all tying together. Add on to that little introductions to each section of the film by legendary musician Lou Reed, the film flows through each subject very smoothly.If your in the mood for a great independent film, check out "Blue in the Face" at your local video store. Just be sure not to start comparing it to "Smoke" as you watch it, otherwise you will get less enjoyment out of the film.9/10
This is a great little set piece to celebrate the diversity and chaos that is, among many other things, my home. Brooklyn is the main character of this story and despite the film's limited scope (set mostly around a tobacco store near Windsor Terrace), it manages to really get at that feeling that makes Brooklyn the only place I wanna live. All the people here, whether they're bored by Brooklyn or fascinated by it, are connected by the genuinely weird way we manage to live together, despite our very prominent differences.